London native fails in bid to win MasterChef Canada title

MasterChef Canada contestant Cryssi Larocque reacts as London native Rozin Abbas, left, is eliminated for failing to impress the judges on the CTV reality show in a replication challenge for the Spanish dish, fideuà, which is similar to paella.

In the end, it wasn’t the cook but the look that ended Rozin Abbas’ dream.

The London native’s bid to win CTV’s MasterChef Canada competition and a $100,000 cash prize ended Monday when he failed to impress the judges with his fideuà, a Spanish dish similar to paella that features only seafood and noodles instead of rice.

But before the fideuà, Abbas was one of four home cooks on the blue team, led by Andre Bhagwandat, which failed to win over 161 Oakville elementary school pupils with their mac and cheese, veggies and dip and avocado chocolate pudding lunch, losing to the red team’s pizza and chocolate brownie.

Losing the team challenge meant the four cooks on blue team – Abbas, Bhagwandat, Cryssi Larocque and Jenny Miller – had to compete against each other in a replication challenge, to prepare a fideuà that looked and tasted like one prepared by the judges, who include Alvin Leung (of Bo Innovation in Hong Kong), Michael Bonacini (of OandB restaurants in Toronto and Claudio Aprile ( of Toronto’s Copetin Restaurant and Bar).

The red team watched from a balcony while the four members of the blue battled to stay on the show.

Fideuà is a popular dish in some areas of Spain that incorporates noodles, squid, mussels, clams and prawns with a sauce that features tomatoes, saffron and garlic.

The cooks were given 20 minutes to prepare the fideuà, the shortest amount of time allotted to a replication challenge in the show’s six seasons.

Bhagwandat and Larocque nailed their dishes, Bhagwandat receiving the highest praise when his was described as the “perfect” fideuà “like you lived in Spain your whole life.”

Miller’s was criticized for not serving the mussels on the half shell, limp noodles, tough squid, a lack of seasoning and too little saffron.

Abbas was criticized for not preparing a fideuà that looked like the chefs’ because he used too little seafood and the squid tentacles weren’t quite cooked.

“I completely ignored how it looked,” said Abbas in a telephone interview. “I used four each of the items and should have used way more. Mine looked nothing like the original. I basically failed half the challenge and I’m going home for something not related to cooking.”

The 30-year-old Abbas had tears in his eyes as he explained on camera, “I was so focused on the taste I forgot to replicate the look . . . it’s gut wrenching.”

Aprile praised Abbas’ efforts on the show.

“Rozin, you shot for the stars every time you cooked,” said Aprile. “Sometimes it causes you to stumble, but your confidence and creativity are also why you are here. It was truly exciting to see what you did every single challenge.”

In a telephone interview, Abbas sounded more determined than ever to make his love of cooking a career. Since the show was taped last fall, he has taken on an internship (in addition to his regular full-time job) at Toronto’s Richmond Station restaurants, whose chef, Hayden Johnston, is competing on Top Chef Canada.

Abbas, 30, works about 35 hours a week at the restaurant, so far mostly on appetizers.

Johnston “took me in and taught me a lot,” said Abbas who will be married in September. “I think I have to pay my dues before I can earn the right to do it for a living out it.”

Abbas said he’s most proud of have “stuck to who I am,” challenging himself to get better while competing on the show, which continues with seven contestants and resumes on CTV Monday at 9 p.m.

“It makes me happy to know I really pushed myself and got to know my limitations,” said Abbas. “I don’t have any regrets. I did my best. I just need to learn to edit myself better and pay better attention.

“I got eliminated for my memory, not my cooking. It’s given me courage and I’m even more driven now.”

This Week's Flyers

Comments

Postmedia is pleased to bring you a new commenting experience. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion and encourage all readers to share their views on our articles. Comments may take up to an hour for moderation before appearing on the site. We ask you to keep your comments relevant and respectful. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.